


life's great mysteries

by helsinkibaby



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Babies, Community: 1-million-words, F/M, Fluff, Het, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-04
Updated: 2017-03-04
Packaged: 2018-09-28 08:06:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10080683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helsinkibaby/pseuds/helsinkibaby
Summary: When Joe wakes up alone, he goes looking for Caitlin.





	

**Author's Note:**

> For the March Rare Pairs challenge, day one - "I used to do that as a kid"

When Joe woke up alone, his first impulse was to reach out and touch the empty space beside him. Finding it still warm to the touch, he sat up, glanced over at Caitlin's side of the bed and the baby monitor that was standing on the bedside cabinet. When he saw that it was turned off, he frowned, swung his legs over the edge of the bed and padded barefoot across the hall to the nursery, shaking his head as he realised how quickly he'd become accustomed to thinking of the room that had once been Barry's in those terms. 

He kept his step as light as he could when he peeked into the room, breathing an internal sigh of relief when he saw Caitlin standing beside the cot. "Hey," he whispered and he knew something was amiss when she didn't turn to look at him. The dim light of the nightlight let him see her arm moving upwards though, her hand moving to her eyes in a movement that he easily recognised. "Caitlin?" 

He was at her side in an instant, sliding an arm around her shoulders, staring down at her face for any clue about how she might be feeling. Her eyes were wet but unswollen, her cheeks pale, not blotchy red. And most importantly, there was a small smile on her face as she looked down at the sleeping baby in the cot. "Look at her," she whispered. 

Joe did - it was one of his favourite things to do. Ellie was curled up into a ball, resembling nothing so much as a hedgehog, one cheek pressed against the mattress, her knees pulled up under her stomach so that her back was curled upwards, her diapered butt sticking up in the air. Joe knew, because he was the one who'd put her down, that she'd gone to sleep on her back; how she always ended up like this was one of life's great mysteries. 

Or maybe not, because Caitlin whispered softly, "I used to do that as a kid." 

Joe lifted one eyebrow. "Yeah?" 

"My dad told me." Caitlin was ostensibly looking at Ellie but her eyes were far away, years in the past. "He took a photograph once, because I looked so cute. Except the flash woke me up and I was awake for hours... Mom had just gone to sleep and he said she was so mad at him, she didn't speak to him for a week..." Pressing her lips together, she swallowed hard. "He kept that picture in his wallet until the day he died." 

Even in the low light, Joe could see her eyes sparkling with fresh tears and he pulled her closer to him. "I just wish he could have seen her," he heard her whisper. "Been the proud grandpa. He would have loved it." 

There was nothing Joe could say to that, so he just kissed the top of her head instead. She huffed out a breath and turned to face him, still not taking her eyes off Ellie, and pressed her body against his. He shivered. "You're freezing," he told her. "We should get you back to bed."

Caitlin's arms tightened around his waist but she didn't move. "Just a few minutes. Please?"

The quiet plea got him where nothing else would have and he rested his cheek against the top of her head, watching their daughter with her, committing the sight to memory, in lieu of a picture, knowing she was doing the same thing. "Take all the time you want," he promised her, not for the first time in their relationship. "I'm not going anywhere."


End file.
